Private equity investing is a source of capital for manufacturers and digital infrastructure companies and an alternative asset for accredited investors. Register today to attend the workshop hosted by Davis Wright Tremaine in Bellevue and featuring Kristofer Gray, CFP of Integrity Financial, on Oct.24, 6-8:30 p.m.

A free CompWise Safety Academy class for AWB's manufacturing retrospective rating group will be held via WebEx on Tuesday, Oct. 24, 9-10:30 a.m. and cover employer Return to Work and Stay at Work programs. The Safety Academy is free for employers participating in AWB's CompWise manufacturing retrospective rating group. Course information and registration details are on the website.

Follow the latest legislative news right from your computer or phone with the tips, tricks and details that we'll teach you at the upcoming "Navigating leg.wa.gov & Bill Tracking" webinar. Cheri Randich of the Legislative Information Center will offer her insights on tracking the legislative process at this Nov. 8 AWB webinar.

Washington voters approved Initiative 1433, which raised the statewide minimum wage and created a new mandate on employers to provide Paid Safe and Sick Leave. The new leave policy goes into effect Jan. 1, 2018, and will apply to every employer in the state with hourly employees. Find out what's required, and how to prepare, in a Nov. 14 webinar with Tim O'Connell of the law firm Stoel Rives.

AWB hosts the Holiday Kids' Tree Project each year with the goal to help as many deserving families as possible during the Christmas season. Since 1989, the Holiday Kids' Tree Project has raised over $390,000 to purchase gifts at Christmas for families in need. All donations are funded by AWB members and the private sector. This year's funds will be distributed to rural fire districts at the annual tree-lighting ceremony at the Capitol Rotunda on Friday, Dec. 1, at 6 p.m. The theme of this year's tree is "Friends of the Forest" and will feature stuffed ornaments of animals native to Washington state.

Meet with members of Congress. Tell your story. Be part of the solution. AWB's 2017 D.C. Fly-in Dec. 4-6 offers business leaders and owners a chance to talk directly with members of Congress and other decision-makers in the nation's capital. Registration is now open for the fourth-annual D.C. Fly-in.

As a state representative, I've spent quite a bit of time studying and learning about rail safety. It's a subject I take seriously. I live in the Town of Steilacoom, where trains are a way of life.

In fact, the Puget Sound coastline in my district is defined by the rail line. And, it's not just about moving freight. Amtrak will soon transport passengers at a very high speed through Lakewood and DuPont. Rail safety is a big deal for our communities.

In 2014, more than 119 million tons of freight traveled by rail over more than 3,000 miles of rail tracks across the state. This activity supports Washington businesses across a variety of important industries, from lumber to agriculture to oil.

Freight rail is also directly responsible for nearly 4,000 jobs and supports tens of thousands more throughout the state...

A few of these factors -- particularly "global air quality" -- are not described in any relevant federal or state law. Rationalizing the unprecedented opinion, Ecology Director Maia Bellon relied on some broad rhetorical strokes...

The Department of Ecology's focus on "global impacts" is a luxury paid for by limiting the prospects for the working people of Cowlitz County. Director Bellon and the other Department of Ecology bureaucrats need to return their focus from global ambitions to local concerns.